“Well, that’s motor sport...”

The Weston Beach races are the focal point of the UK enduro motorcycling season, and the event attracts all-comers of varying experience – including young riders with fresh ambition.

Take Harry Nott. The 13-year-old has only been riding for a couple of years and this was his second crack at Weston. His dad Andrew says the bug has well and truly bitten.

“Harry is a member of Sudbury Motorcycle Club and there is a very strong enduro/motocross gaggle in this area of Suffolk. He’s done some motocross this season with everything geared towards Weston.”

Harry has been riding a Husqvarna TC 85 and has established himself as a frontrunner in the Eastern Youth Enduro series, and has taken in a couple of rounds in the Welsh championship too. He’s lucky enough to have his own workshop at home and Andrew says tinkering with his bike makes for “a pretty healthy lifestyle”.

So is junior off-road motorcycling as brutal as the youth karting arenas? “Motocross is pretty dog-eat-dog, but enduro has a difference ethos about it,” says Andrew. “The other competitors and families are all very friendly. You camp at the venue and get to see the same people every time. Even the kids Harry is riding against – there’s a camaraderie. If the bike breaks, all the parents pitch in to help fix it. It’s a nice place to be.”

From such acorns, careers in the car and motorcycle world are born. Well-known classics dealer Lee Maxted-Page is a family friend. “I took Harry down to Lee’s place to see what he does. He likes the engineering side, and has been around cars and bikes all his life so far. It’s in his DNA.”

As for Weston, Harry was out of luck – for a second successive year. His engine seized before he could get into his stride. “As Lee said to him, ‘Well, Harry, that’s motor sport,’” says Andrew. “It’s a good lesson for him. All the guys in the pits realised he’d broken down and came up to him to say, ‘You’ll be all right – next year.’”

So, third time lucky in 2026? “I’ve sold the other bike and just bought him a new one,” says Dad, “so the answer to that is yes!”